Published November 1982 | Version Submitted
Working Paper Open

A Comparative Analysis of Direct Democracy, Two Candidate Elections, and Three Candidate Elections in an Experimental Environment

Abstract

This study explores the behavioral properties of two-candidate elections, three-candidate elections and large committees. The political processes were created under laboratory conditions that hold constant variables other than the decision rule. The core/equilibrium of a spatial model of competition is an accurate predictor of outcomes but the outcome variance is higher under three-candidate processes than it is under the other two. A poll tax is also studied.

Additional Information

The financial support of the National Science Foundation and the Caltech Program for Enterprise and Public Policy is gratefully acknowledged. The Guggenheim Foundation and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences also provided time and the research assistance of Lynn Gale and Ron Rice. Originally presented at the 1977 meeting of the Public Choice Society. Published as Plott, Charles R. (1991) A Comparative Analysis of Direct Democracy, Two-Candidate Elections, and Three-Candidate Elections in an Experimental Environment. In: Laboratory Research in Political Economy. University of Michigan Press , Ann Arbor, MI, pp. 11-31.

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Identifiers

Eprint ID
81580
Resolver ID
CaltechAUTHORS:20170919-144243845

Funding

NSF
Caltech Program for Enterprise and Public Policy

Dates

Created
2017-09-26
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Updated
2019-10-03
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Caltech Custom Metadata

Caltech groups
Social Science Working Papers
Series Name
Social Science Working Paper
Series Volume or Issue Number
457